Pre-loved furniture, Vintage IKEA, discontinued IKEA, vintage habitat, the psychology of this historical ‘re-use’ of items from the past moment is fascinating.

 

 

 

There’s a kind of nostalgia woven into the narrative of vintage things, one that escapes the sterility of something newly bought.  

 

 

Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing quite like sliding into a new pair of Rick Owens sweatpants, the fit, the fabric, the fashion.  But that newly bought experience pales in comparison to the romance behind a vintage find - the possibility, the idiosyncratic patina, the latent story within, the bargain!

 

 

Yeh there are the obvious but no less relevant points, craftsmanship, quality of materials, quality of manufacture.  But ultimately it is the soothing quality of vintage and pre-owned that echos grandmas reassurance, regales our fragility with a flagrant tale of old, when things were simpler, and somehow people and times were better.

 

 

The bargain?  Vintage furniture, clothing, items have an inherent bargain in them, and in hyper-capitalist draconian groundhog 1984, EVERYONE LOVES A BARGAIN.  

 

That chair is from the 1950s, it is solid, it isn’t going anywhere, it has outlasted grandparents it will outlast you, technically you’re just subscribing to the piece while you inhale-exhale repeat.  

 

 

A platform like FirstDibs can make your heart skip a beat when pondering the cost of a vintage Camaleonda by Mario Bellini, but compared to whatever version of watered down consumer trend condensing 3-5 year lasting ‘suite’ newly available - there really is no comparison.